1-33. The Tabernacle Set Up.
1,2-. The date.
-2. The Tabernacle set up.
3-8. The placing of the furniture.
9-16. Consecration.
17-. The date.
-17-19. The Tabernacle set up.
20-33-. The placing of the furniture.
-33. Completion.
Exodus 40:1 And the LORD spoke unto Moses, saying,
2 "On the first day of the first month
(= The Spring equinox, March 20th. Six events in Scripture on this day. See Gen. 8:13. In the first month on the 14th day [April 3rd] the first Passover was kept [Num. 9:1-3]. On the first day of the second month they were numbered [Num. 1:1,2]: 50 days between Ex.40:17 and Num. 10:11. In the interval comes the book of Leviticus, and Num.1:1-10:10. On the 13th day of the second month the Tabernacle was taken down, ad the journey began from Sinai to Canaan [Num. 10:11].
So we know that it has been two weeks shy of one year that the children of Israel departed out of Egypt for their journey to the promise land.
Passover was the time that the death angel passed over the children of Israel, which had the blood of the lamb that was slain over the door and on the side post of their home; and claimed the life of the firstborn through out the land of Egypt. Both man and animals were slain on the night following the fourteenth day following the Springs Equinox. The children of Israel departed out of the land on the fifteenth day; they had eaten the roasted lamb, girded for the trip, and when the sun came up it was time to move. The Egyptians were in mourning for the loss of their first born, and were more than willing to give the children of Israel what ever they wanted; animals, gold and silver, even the precious stones that went to be mounted on the breastplate.
Man's traditions marks the day when the sun comes up, but God marks the start of the day when the sun goes down and the moon comes up. When the sun went down on the fourteenth day, the close of the day, that begin the Passover, and marked the fifteenth day. So sunset begins the new day for God's people. In this dispensation of flesh man, Satan is the prince of darkness, and the day starts with darkness, and the death angel coming and passing over before the light of the day comes. But the light and freedom comes when we come out of darkness, spiritual darkness and into the light of that candlestick.
This solar calendar will never change for God's set times, and Passover is one of those set times. The Sun is set on a set it's course and is dependable for our light, whereas the moon is not dependable for setting the times of God's children. Days have to be added to make up the year and adjust for lunar times. The sun crosses the equator twice a year, both in the spring and the fall, and these two time are the set times of the Lord.
This is why there was such precision built into the building of the Tabernacle and later the Temple, for when the east gate was over to have the rising sun shine through the east gate, pass over the alter in shine into the vail into the holy of holies, and that would happen just one time in the spring, and one time in the fall. If the sun's course did not do that at the rising of the sun, it was not the day of the Equinox: the priest would shout the gate and open it the next day. This established the first day of the year, and the exact set time for the feast day of Passover.)
shalt thou set up the tabernacle
(= dwelling place of Yahaveh.)
of the tent of the congregation.
3 And thou shalt put therein the ark of the Testimony, and cover the ark with the veil.
4 And thou shalt bring in the table and set in order the things that are to be set in order upon it;
(I.e. in two piles, six loaves in each pile, answering to the stones on the shoulder of the High Priest. There was a golden dish at the bottom of each, and another reversed on the top, with a golden bowl of frankincense on the top. Cp. 25:23-30.)
and thou shalt bring in the candlestick and light the lamps thereof.
(The light from the candlestick represents the the truth that comes from the oil, that flows out to the people. The light from God will shatter the darkness, and this is real no matter what time frame you are in. Remember that each of these items in the tabernacle worship is a shadow of things to come. This instruction of the tabernacle is the school master for our understanding.)
5 And thou shalt set the altar of gold for the incense before the ark of the Testimony, and put up the hanging of the door to the tabernacle.
6 And thou shalt set the altar of the burnt offering before the door of the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation.
(This "laver" is set in place so that the priests and people can wash themselves before they pass this point in their worship. That cleansing laver today is the blood of Christ. The blood of Christ is the only substance in cleansing of the soul, and washes you and makes your soul white as snow. It is through repentance in Jesus name that we have forgiveness in the washing away of sins. Again these things in Exodus are only a school teacher for us living today, an object lesson for man to see and be able to better understand what God is telling us in His Word. So this is the approach that we must take to come to God, and at the same time pleasing to God. God set the rules for worshipping Him, and before Jesus Christ's coming into the world to be a sacrifice, this was the order that man had to follow to approach and commune with Him. It was the shadow of things to come, when our Lord Jesus Christ would be that sacrifice for our sins.)
7 And thou shalt set the laver between the tent of the congregation and the altar, and shalt put water therein.
8 And thou shalt set up the court round about, and hang up the hanging at the court gate.
9 And thou shalt take the anointing oil, and anoint the tabernacle and all that is therein, and shalt hallow it and all the vessels thereof; and it shall be holy.
10 And thou shalt anoint the altar of the burnt offering and all his vessels, and sanctify the altar; and it shall be an altar most holy.
(Christians should anoint their homes, and it should be a common thing to us. It is not something that is foreign to us, for the very name "Christ" or "Christos" means the "Anointed One". For a Christian to say they are not acquainted with anointing is biblical illiteracy. The oil itself doesn't cause the healing change or protection, but it is the act of obedience to God by us that protects; because God instructed us to do so for our protection. With obedience come God's blessings and protection.)
11 And thou shalt anoint the laver and his foot, and sanctify it.
12 And thou shalt bring Aaron and his sons unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and wash them with water.
(This should also be a lesson to us today, that when we are to approach God and petition him, the first thing we are required to do is repent to the Father of our sins, in Jesus Name, for that is the washing that takes place today. If you want to talk to God and have him hear you, first repent of those sins you know you have committed, as well as those sins that you have committed that you are not aware of. You then approach the Father with a clean soul, whiter than snow.)
13 And thou shalt put upon Aaron the holy garments, and anoint him and sanctify him, that he may minister unto Me in the priest's office.
(When you "anoint", or rub with oil, you consecrate that person or thing to God, and place it under God's protection. As we read here in Exodus, anointing is done because God required it, and we do it in obedience to Him.)
14 And thou shalt bring his sons and clothe them with coats;
15 And thou shalt anoint them, as thou didst anoint their father, that they may minister unto Me in the priest's office. For their anointing shall surely be an everlasting priesthood throughout their generations."
(However there will be another priest coming later, after the order of Melchisedec.
Hebrews 3:1-3 "Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus; Who was faithful to Him That appointed Him, as also Moses was faithful in all His house. For this Man (Jesus Christ) was counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as he who hath builded the house hath more honour than the house."
Jesus Christ was the anointed on of God who was the only one worthy to fulfill the position, and be the perfect sacrifice for one and all times. Jesus is our High priest and the only hope that our soul has, which can now enter through the veil into the holy of holies. In Hebrews 6:20 tells us that "Whither the Forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made an High Priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec." "Melchisedec" means "the King of the Just", being the Messiah that sits on that mercy seat, and becoming the fulfillment of the Law, that was placed under that mercy seat. Once you repent God makes you perfect spiritually, for your sins have been removed at that moment in time, and you are free to approach the Heavenly Father.
So each of us should pass the laver on our way to talk to the Father, and that means to wash yourself through repentance in the blood of Christ. Repent: Confess those sins that stand between you and God and remove them for all times. Then enter into the Holy of holies and commune with God. This is the shadow of things to come, and God is telling you what each of us should do before we come in to talk to him. At Jesus' resurrection, the kingdom of God came activated and a reality, and these things of the law were all fulfilled in Christ. When Christ came out of the tomb, the kingdom of God became a reality for man. In Luke 17:20, 21 Jesus told us what the kingdom of God was.
Luke 17:20, 21 "And when He was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, He [Jesus] answered them and said, "The kingdom of God cometh not with observation: [it is not something that you can see physically] Neither shall they say, `Lo here! or, `Lo there!' for the kingdom of God is within you."
When your spiritual eyes are open to see the truths from God's Word, and in repentance in Jesus name you enter into the kingdom of God. When the Spirit of God comes into your heart, you enter into the kingdom of God and become part of the many membered body of Christ.)
16 Thus did Moses: according to all that the LORD commanded him, so did he.
20th March, 1490 B.C.
17 And it came to pass in the first month in the second year, on the first day of the month, that the tabernacle was reared up.
(So these children of Israel are one full year away from their bondage in Egypt before this tabernacle was finish, and the set up for worship. On that spring Equinox, Moses obeyed exactly as God commanded him to do. That is when the tent was set up and all the things were put in place.)
18 And Moses reared up the tabernacle, and fastened his sockets and set up the boards thereof, and put in the bars thereof and reared up his pillars.
(If you are in Christ, then you are pillars in the Temple of God's kingdom. God's elect are the pillars in the Millennium temple, as we read in Revelation 3:12; "Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the Temple of My God, and he shall go no more out: I will write upon him the name of My God, and the name of the city of My God, which is new Jerusalem..." The time of the new Jerusalem that comes down out of heaven is after the great white throne judgment, and this tells us that you will be in that eternal kingdom. You will be the pillar that Jesus can count on during that Millennium age of testing.)
19 And he spread abroad the tent over the tabernacle, and put the covering of the tent above upon it, as the LORD commanded Moses.
(See 39:1, and note the 7 occ. of the expression "according as Yehovah commanded Moses" in his chapter as in chapter 39. #7 = spiritual perfection, or completeness.)
20 And he took and put the testimony into the ark, and set the staves on the ark, and put the mercy seat above upon the ark.
21 And he brought the ark into the tabernacle, and set up the veil of the covering and covered the ark of the Testimony, as the LORD commanded Moses.
(Again, this covering is the vail that was rent from top to bottom at the death of our Lord Jesus Christ. This was done so that you could approach that mercy seat resting atop the ark, where the mercy seat rested. The mercy seat is the seat of Christ, and it is Christ; the fulfiller and finisher of the law. In this time of Moses you only approached God at His set times, but following the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, that door is open, and we can go in and approach God at any time. That was the place where you communed with God, and today He wants to talk to you when you are ready to talk to Him. The price has been completely paid for.)
22 And he put the table in the tent of the congregation upon the side of the tabernacle northward, outside the veil.
23 And he set the bread in order upon it before the LORD, as the LORD had commanded Moses.
(Today it is not the getting out bread and putting it on the table; but Christ is the bread and we approach the throne of God through the blood of Jesus Christ. Again that is done through a repenting heart, in confessing our sins to him in the name of Jesus. This bread and the table is an object lesson to you and I, as to how we can please God.)
24 And he put the candlestick in the tent of the congregation opposite the table, on the side of the tabernacle southward.
(The candlestick is the light of the world, it is our Lord Jesus Christ, but it was represented here in the "menorah" in Hebrew. The seven branches of the golden candlestick represent God elect, the seven thousand. This same candlestick is brought up in Zechariah 4, pertaining to the two witnesses with the seven eyes of God, which are the elect, the pillars of God's tabernacle. If you want to play a part in God's kingdom, spiritually speaking this is the shadow of how it is to be done.)
25 And he lighted the lamps before the LORD, as the LORD commanded Moses.
(When the light from God's Word enters into ones mind, that darkness of heathenism is gone. Jesus Christ is that light for this world age of flesh man.)
26 And he put the golden altar in the tent of the congregation before the veil;
27 And he burned sweet incense thereon, as the LORD commanded Moses.
28 And he set up the hanging at the door of the tabernacle.
29 And he put the altar of burnt offering by the door of the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation, and offered upon it the burnt offering and the meat offering, as the LORD commanded Moses.
(Hosea 6:6 tells us what God wants from us today: "For I desire mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings." Today it is blasphemy to anyone to offer a burnt offering to God, when Jesus Christ has already paid the price for sin. Blood of goats and lambs did not forgive sin, but was a temporary covering until the only true offering could be made, which was the blood of Christ, the Anointed on. Jesus Christ was the offering for one and all times. God desires mercy, which is your love for Him: Not a sacrifice, which is a burnt offering. God wants your love and devotion to Him, rather than any burnt offering of an animal. That animal simply took the place of the soul, until the true offering of Christ would come to die on the cross.
In the first Adam, under the law, we all deserve death for our sins, but under the second Adam, Christ, there is mercy and we are all made alive. Friend, this is how you do that, how you come alive in Christ. Under the sacrifice of Love, of loving Him for His place in paying the price for you. So this book of Exodus is teaching us like a parent would teach his child something that was important to learn. It was an object lesson set in motion as to how we are to approach the Father, and each part of this lesson is important. This is the door; This is the wash basin; this is the light; and we turn the light on by this switch. and so on each part of the lesson continues. The point to us living today is that this entire plan has been fulfilled in the death and resurrection of Christ, so before we enter that door to God, we must first wash ourselves clean from sin, and we do that through faith in our repentance in the name of Jesus, and put those sins under the blood of Christ. The way of the tabernacle is the way that you teach little children.
The Messiah sits over that mercy seat that is over the law, and He is the One that judges and understands completely the condition of your soul. You can't con God, for He is the one that forgives and takes mercy on the soul that comes to him in repentance. The thing that God wants from you is your love, that is the only things that you can give Him, for He created and controls everything that you have. Are you willing to give God your love?)
30 And he set the laver between the tent of the congregation and the altar, and put water there for washing.
31 And Moses and Aaron and his sons washed their hands and their feet thereat.
(The ceremonial cleansings or "baptisms" [Heb.6:2], always performed by the persons themselves.)
32 When they went into the tent of the congregation and when they came near unto the altar, they washed, as the LORD commanded Moses.
(This verse lets us know that before you can approach God, when you have been around the people, he must wash and cleanse himself. In Ezekiel 44 it talks about this same thing, when the priests have been out in and among the population, and come back into the Temple of Christ, there is a washing and cleansing also that must take place.)
33 And he reared up the court round about the tabernacle and the altar, and set up the hanging of the court gate. So Moses finished the work.
(So on what date was this tabernacle completed? So what day do you set it up in your mind to conform to God's instructions? It is set up on the day of the Spring Equinox, when we prepare for the Passover feast. It is the first day of the solar year, the first day that the children of light go by. So that tabernacle is in place, and on the fifteenth day, when the sun goes down on the fourteenth day, is the Passover. At Jesus death on the cross, He became our Passover.)
34, 35. The Approbation and Blessing of the Lord.
(Corresponding with that of Moses in 39:43).
34 Then a cloud covered the tent of the congregation, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.
35 And Moses was not able to enter into the tent of the congregation because the cloud abode thereon, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.
(The glory, the "shekanyah glory" of the Lord filled the tabernacle. Go to the Hebrew dictionary and look up the word # 7935; Shekanyah; from 7931; from the idea of lodging, to abide, to dwell, to rest and remain." It is the glory of God dwelling there, with man and in our hearts and minds. This is the school master that teaches us about the dwelling of God with each of us.)
36-38. Journeyings From Sinai.
36 And when the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the children of Israel went onward in all their journeys;
(This continued till Moses' death, when the ark [which till then was carried in the midst of the host] took its place and went "before them". See Josh. 3:3-6:11.)
37 But if the cloud were not taken up, then they journeyed not until the day that it was taken up.
(This is God telling you to let Him lead your life. If the cloud is set it is time to stop, and when it is taken up, it is time to go. It was like a stop light on the corner of our streets, the red is for the cloud down, and the green is when the cloud has risen into the heavens. God is control of when the children of Israel move, and when they stay put. It's no different today than then, for we are to allow God to control our lives, and lead us as to when it is safe to do what we do, and when it is not. That is why we pray and ask Him for guidance; for He can read our minds, know our problems, change the minds of those that would do us harm, and kick those stones out of our spiritual path so we do not trip over them.)
38 For the cloud of the LORD was upon the tabernacle by day and fire was on it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel throughout all their journeys.
(God dwelt with the children of Israel through all their forty years of journey through the wilderness, and led them into the promise land. We have had a view by God of how He dwells with man. In the time of Moses it was through this tabernacle, a tent where the sacrifices and offerings were given; and today that Tabernacle is Christ. He is our resting place, or place of comfort, and the wash basin where we go to cleanse ourselves from sin through our faith and repentance in His name. It is by His blood that our sins are washed clean and we enter into the presence of our Heavenly Father.)